Santa Anita: Pick six carryover adds intrigue to Thursday card

ARCADIA, Calif. – A welcome boost to the Santa Anita winter meet arrives Thursday in the form of an $87,195 pick six carryover that could produce a pool exceeding $500,000.

The racing could use some zing. The first two weeks of the meet were marked by small fields and surprising predictability. The average field size is 7.73 horses, down from 8.85 for the same period a year ago. Meanwhile, favorites are running amok, winning at a 42-percent clip.

Thursday’s carryover is the third of the nine-day-old meet and covers races 3-8. Post time for the opening leg of the sequence is 2:01 p.m. Pacific.

Race 3 is a $40,000 claiming sprint for 4-year-olds in which the favorites hail from the two leading stables. Bob Baffert trains Ranulf, a convincing last-out winner of a restricted $25,000 claimer, and Jerry Hollendorfer starts recent claim Too Fast to Pass.

Ranulf faces challenges regarding post position and surface. He would be the first horse this meet to win a six-furlong race from the rail (posts 1 and 2 are winless from 17 races at six furlongs). Ranulf also is unproven on dirt. His two wins were at Hollywood Park.

It might not matter. Ranulf earned a 91 Beyer Speed Figure last out, fast enough to win Thursday. He also has enough speed to establish position.

[Build your pick six ticket with DRF TicketMaker]

Too Fast to Pass breaks from post 2. Claimed last out from a runner-up finish in a turf sprint, he handles any surface and has the meet’s top trainer-and-jockey combo – Hollendorfer and Rafael Bejarano are 5 for 12 together.

Race 4 is a $30,000 maiden-claiming sprint for 3-year-olds. The tepid choice is Rambling House, who improved slightly in his second start, finishing fifth against similar competition. His rivals include first-time starters Warren’s Sallyized, Southern Justice, and Cleardofallcharges, along with class dropper Vegas Street and shipper Keeneland Kitten.

Race 5 is a turf route for statebred maiden fillies. It includes a second-time starter some pick six bettors will consider to be a possible single. Princess Genevieve finished fourth as the favorite in her debut, a turf sprint that was better than it appears.

Princess Genevieve broke well, dropped back, and finished evenly. She missed by 2 1/2 lengths while seemingly looking for a longer distance. She has worked twice since for Hollendorfer and stretches out against modest foes. Her main opponent is Euroclydon, a low-rated runner-up last out but with experience around two turns.

Race 6 is a $12,500 claiming sprint for nonwinners of two. The favorite enters with a dubious pattern. Jovita’s Tuffy has raced four times, including a maiden special weight win in May and a seventh-place finish in an allowance in December. The fastest in the field on figures, his sudden drop to the bottom casts doubt on his form.

Other contenders include Warren’s Tyler S., who returns to the surface on which he scored a good maiden win three back. Tale Be Told was compromised by slow starts from an inside post in his last two. His maiden win in September puts him in the hunt.

Race 7 is a 1 1/4-mile route for nonwinners of two other than. The rails are scheduled to be placed at the outermost 30-foot position Thursday, and front-runner Monastic could be loose on the lead.

The challenge facing Monastic is distance; 1 1/4 miles is uncharted territory for him. His four turf tries at 1 1/8 miles produced a runner-up finish and a pair of thirds. His rivals include Power Foot and European shipper Black Spirit.

Race 8 is a $20,000 maiden claimer for older fillies and mares. The comebacker Circular Logic could set the pace; first-time starter Unique Suances goes for trainer Darrell Vienna, who has won five races from his 21 most recent maiden-claiming first-timers.

Michael Hammersly's pick six ticket for Thursday at Santa Anita